Articles about the "Boston Art Scene" Response

According to the articles we had to read, there has been a big change in the Boston art gallery world in the past year. First off, because of the economic crisis, rents for galleries have gone up, there has been less "impulse buying" of art since people have less money to spend, and because of these things, many galleries have had to close. Some have closed so that the owners can rent a less expensive space. Some are closing just until the economic downturn goes away. And others are moving across the country, to an entirely different country, or to another, less expensive part of town. However, some galleries are blossoming and apparently are not affected by the financial situation. The South End, for example, has high hopes for becoming an art gallery hot-spot since the rents are lower there. Art fairs, along with the Internet, have also recently become major players in the art- advertising and -selling world.

These changes could affect the Boston art scene in a number of ways, some good and some bad. On the bad side, people may become more removed from the art world because they don't have the money or time to go see galleries or buy art because of the current economic situation. Since gallery owners also don't have as much money to advertise their art and galleries, people may go to less shows. On the flip side, one optimistic artist said something along the lines of "if they want to find me, they will." Because of this shift, the Internet and art fairs may soon become the prime places to buy art rather than in galleries. This is neither a necessarily good or bad thing. However, a definitely good thing is that this lapse in selling may allow artists to try more radical, different works that they wouldn't otherwise make. If they aren't going to sell much of what they usually sell, they might as well create their most outrageous contemporary work to see if that sells. Who knows, maybe a new form or style of art might be invented.

Strangely enough, I don't think I have ever been to a gallery showing...